Highlights:

• Carrier Design Guide helps hardware engineers design application-specific carrier boards for COM-HPC-based systems.
• Revision 2.2 of the Carrier Design Guide introduces new diagrams, figures, and design notes for COM-HPC Mini.
• Document contains technical materials such as interface schematics and practical guidance on design rules.

WAKEFIELD, MA. PICMG, a consortium for open hardware specifications, has released revision 2.2 of the COM-HPC Carrier Design Guide. This comprehensive document contains interface schematics, diagrams, design rules and requirements, and more for PCB layout engineers and hardware developers looking to create application-specific carrier boards that pair with COM-HPC modules.

Revision 2.2 of the Design Guide includes updates to address the new COM-HPC 2.1 specification, nicknamed COM-HPC Mini, which is the 95 mm x 60 mm platform that uses one less connector compared to its fellow COM-HPC form factors, but still delivers 400 pins for carrying high-speed signals from the processor module to carrier boards.

“Designing a carrier board can be a complex and time-consuming process, but the COM-HPC Design Guide helps streamline that process” says Peter Hunold, head of hardware engineering at Kontron Europe GmbH and editor of the COM-HPC working group. “It serves as an excellent complement to the COM-HPC base specification, as well as, for revisions like COM-HPC 2.1 that introduced the new “Mini” form factor and vendor documentation.”

What’s New in COM-HPC Carrier Design Guide Revision 2.2

Revision 2.2 of the Carrier Board Design Guide primarily focuses on the COM-HPC Mini, a small form factor expansion of the COM-HPC standard first announced in 2022. This new guide clarifies the differences between COM-HPC Client and COM-HPC Mini carrier board requirements, with examples that illustrate modifications necessary to move from Client- to Mini-compatible designs.

The Design Guide 2.2 release also introduces information on the Intel JHL9040R USB4 Retimer, which replaces the JHL8040R in Rev 2.1. In addition to updated references, the document includes Intel JHL9040R block diagrams for both COM-HPC Client and COM-HPC Mini designs.

“Designing hardware to support new and emerging workloads is becoming progressively more challenging. Open standards such as COM-HPC help businesses overcome those challenges,” says Christian Eder, director of market intelligence at congatec. “They considerably reduce time-to-market for even the most sophisticated applications, especially with documentation to streamline the design process.”

Learn More

The COM-HPC Carrier Design Guide revision 2.2 can be downloaded free of charge from PICMG’s website. For more information on the Design Guide, the COM-HPC standard, and other related specifications, visit:

• COM-HPC Design Guide Revision 2.2: https://www.picmg.org/wp-content/uploads/PICMG_COMHPC_CDG_R2_2.pdf
• COM-HPC Specification Documents: https://www.picmg.org/shop/
• COM-HPC Overview: https://www.picmg.org/openstandards/com-hpc/
• PICMG Design Guides: https://www.picmg.org/resources/design-guides/

About PICMG

Founded in 1994, PICMG is a not-for-profit 501(c) consortium of companies and organizations that collaboratively develop open standards for high performance industrial, Industrial IoT, process control and automation, military & aerospace, telecommunications, test & measurement, medical, and general-purpose embedded computing applications. There are more than 150 member companies that specialize in a wide range of technical disciplines, including mechanical and thermal design, single board computer design, high-speed signaling design and analysis, networking expertise, backplane, and packaging design, power management, high availability software and comprehensive system management.

Key standards families developed by PICMG include COM-HPC, COM Express, CompactPCI, CompactPCI Serial, MicroTCA, AdvancedMC, AdvancedTCA, InterEdge, ModBlox7, HPM (Hardware Platform Management), MicroSAM, and SHB Express. For more information, visit https://www.picmg.org.

• 30th anniversary highlighted by two new specification families and industry partnerships
• New PICMG branding on display at embedded world Hall 5, Booth 342
• Reception for PICMG members to be held on Wednesday, April 10th at Nuremberg Messe

April 8th, Nuremberg, Germany. For 30 years, PICMG has been shaping the embedded computing industry with standards. However, the organization is by no means resting on its laurels. Quite the opposite: with the ratification of two completely new standards just this year, the consortium and its members are looking forward to the next 30 years. To celebrate this milestone, PICMG is rolling out all new branding, with new logos for all related specifications, in Hall 5, booth 5-342 at this year’s embedded world in Nuremberg.

Founded in 1994, PICMG is a nonprofit consortium of companies and organizations that collaboratively develop open standards for high performance embedded computing applications used by the telecommunications, military, and industrial market sectors.

There are over 140 member companies that specialize in a wide range of technical disciplines, including mechanical and thermal design, single board computer design, very high speed signaling design and analysis, networking expertise, backplane and packaging design, power management, High Availability software, and comprehensive system management. Over 40 members will be showcasing their products based on PICMG specifications at the 2024 Embedded World.

Some of the standards families developed under PICMG include COM-HPC, COM Express®, MicroTCA®, CompactPCI® Serial, AdvancedMC®, CompactPCI®, AdvancedTCA®, as well as the newly ratified ModBlox7 and InterEdge.

In its 30 years of operation, PICMG has published over 60 specifications developed by participants from hundreds of companies. Work across a wide range of markets, applications, and technologies continues as the boundaries of datacom, telecom, mil/aero, industrial, man machine interface applications, and deeply embedded computing blur.

Thousands of products ranging from components, subsystems, and complete application ready systems are commercially available and represent over $5B USD in yearly global revenue.

To Learn More:
Visit the “Value of Open Standards Page” here. Discover more about the open standards environment and learn how your company can participate and profit from belonging to PICMG here. Or, attend the 2024 Embedded World Exhibition & Conference to meet with PICMG representatives in person.

• PICMG website: www.picmg.org
• Embedded World 2024 website: www.embedded-world.de

About PICMG
Founded in 1994, PICMG is a not-for-profit 501(c) consortium of companies and organizations that collaboratively develop open standards for high-performance industrial, Industrial IoT, military & aerospace, telecommunications, test & measurement, medical, and general-purpose embedded computing applications. There are more than 150 member companies that specialize in a wide range of technical disciplines, including mechanical and thermal design, single board computer design, high-speed signaling design and analysis, networking expertise, backplane, and packaging design, power management, high availability software and comprehensive system management.

Key standards families developed by PICMG include COM-HPC, COM Express, CompactPCI, AdvancedTCA, MicroTCA, AdvancedMC, CompactPCI Serial, InterEdge, ModBlox7, SHB Express, MicroSAM, and HPM (Hardware Platform Management). For more information, visit https://www.picmg.org.

• CPU, Power Supply, and I/O units can be configured as redundant or non-redundant systems in transportation, automation, avionics, defense, and other markets
• 1.4” horizontal pitch (7 HP) per unit supports mounting on walls, DIN rails or side-by-side in a 19” sub-rack
• Modular, scalable architecture removes backplane for configurable, cost-effective low-, medium-, and high-volume production runs

WAKEFIELD, MA. PICMG, a leading consortium for the development of open embedded computing specifications, has ratified the ModBlox7 base specification. The first-of-its-kind specification addresses industry’s need for modular and interoperable embedded box PCs by defining a flexible mechanical architecture and “units” that fit a 1.4-inch horizontal pitch (7 HP) form factor.

The ModBlox7 architecture removes expensive components like backplanes and shelf controllers to enable the creation of price-competitive systems even at low volumes. Up to 12 of the 7 HP units can be interconnected and mounted on walls, DIN rails, or inserted in a 19” sub-rack.

“With ModBlox7, we combine the advantages of modular standards like CompactPCI and CompactPCI Serial with the demands we see from box PC customers like cost sensitivity, small form factor, and low weight,” explains Mathias Beer, CEO of Ci4Rail GmbH and member of the PICMG ModBlox7 working group. “By combining all of this in a PICMG specification, ModBlox7 addresses the design requirements of our clients and avoids vendor lock in.”

The Building Block Architecture of ModBlox7

A typical ModBlox7 system consists of Power Units, Processing Units, and PCIe or USB 2.0/3.0 Input and Output Units (IOUs), each of which measures 1.4” or 7 HP wide. Units can also be extended in 7HP increments to 14 HP, 21 HP, and so on and remain compatible with the specification.

Power Unit blocks convert external supply voltage into a 12V internal voltage and connect to Processing Units via terminal wire-to-board or board-to-board connectors. Processing Units support an overall thermal design power (TDP) of up to 150W and interface with IOUs over high-speed board-to-board connectors.

While a minimum ModBlox7 system consists of just one Processing Unit and one Power Unit, they can support as many as four PCI Express-based or eight USB-based IOUs. For high-availability or safety applications, ModBlox7 systems can also be configured with redundant Processing Units or Power Units. The maximum number of slots supported in any ModBlox7 is 12.

“The ModBlox7 standard defines a direct board-to-board interconnect in a box format to realize cost-effective system solutions,” says Bernd Kleeberg, CEO and Head of Sales at EKF Elektronik GmbH and chair of the PICMG ModBlox7 working group. “Thanks to native support for redundancy, ModBlox7 is also recommended for high-availability solutions.”

Getting Started with ModBlox7

ModBlox7 is designed for edge computing, data acquisition, communication, and control use cases in transportation, automation, avionics, defense, medical, agriculture, and other demanding markets. A multi-vendor supplier ecosystem helps control cost and ensures product availability over the long lifecycles of deployments in these domains.

Members of the PICMG ModBlox7 subcommittee include Ci4Rail GmbH, EKF Elektronik GmbH, ELTEC Elektronik AG, Elma Electronic, Embeck Co., Ltd., ept GmbH, HEITEC AG, Hirose Electric Europe B.V., nVent/Schroff GmbH, Phoenix Contact GmbH & Co. KG, Samtec, Inc., Sealevel Systems, Inc., UBER Co. Ltd., FASTWEL Group Co. Ltd, and Tews Technologies GmbH.

Products based on the ModBlox7 base specification are available now. The specification is also available for purchase and download at www.picmg.org/product/modblox7.

For more information on ModBlox7, visit:

• ModBlox7 Industrial Box PC Standard: Overview & How to Get Involved: www.picmg.org/modblox7
• PICMG ModBlox7—An Open, Flexible Standard for the Growing Industrial Box PC Market: https://embeddedcomputing.com/application/industrial/industrial-iot/picmg-modblox7-an-open-flexible-standard-for-the-growing-industrial-box-pc-market

About PICMG
Founded in 1994, PICMG is a not-for-profit 501(c) consortium of companies and organizations that collaboratively develop open standards for high performance industrial, Industrial IoT, military & aerospace, telecommunications, test & measurement, medical, and general-purpose embedded computing applications. There are more than 140 member companies that specialize in a wide range of technical disciplines, including mechanical and thermal design, single board computer design, high-speed signaling design and analysis, networking expertise, backplane, and packaging design, power management, high availability software and comprehensive system management.

Key standards families developed by PICMG include COM-HPC, COM Express, CompactPCI, AdvancedTCA, MicroTCA, AdvancedMC, CompactPCI Serial, InterEdge, ModBlox7, SHB Express, MicroSAM, and HPM (Hardware Platform Management). For more information, visit www.picmg.org.